More people commuting between here and New Orleans

Brittany Bauman, a lifelong Houma resident, has been commuting to her job at a car-finance company on New Orleans’ West Bank for about 18 months.

Cara BaylesStaff Writer

Brittany Bauman, a lifelong Houma resident, has been commuting to her job at a car-finance company on New Orleans’ West Bank for about 18 months.

Though rents are sometimes cheaper in the Gretna area, Bauman said she hasn’t moved there yet “because it’s harder to find a decent place to live,” especially with two dogs. She said she is “still looking and ready to move, though.”

Peter LeCompte, a respiratory therapist from Chauvin, commutes to and from Marrero for work. He lives in his hometown to take care of his ailing parents and because he “cannot stand the city,” citing concerns about crime.

A new report shows they are part of a trend: More people are commuting between Houma-Thibodaux and New Orleans.

The number of locals commuting to New Orleans for work increased by more than 21 percent over six years, from 9,140 in 2004 to 11,133 in 2010, according to census data compiled by the Greater New Orleans Community Data Center.

In 2004 7,145 workers commuted from New Orleans to the Houma-Thibodaux area, the nonprofit group reports. Six years later, that number jumped 16 percent to 8,298 people.

All told, nearly 68,000 workers commuted regularly between New Orleans, Baton Rouge and Houma-Thibodaux in 2010, an 11 percent increase since 2004.

“The number of Houma-Thibodaux-to-New Orleans commuters has increased despite substantial loss of jobs there post-Katrina,” said Elaine Ortiz, a senior research associate for the Data Center. “We all anecdotally hear about people who commute, but the number was surprisingly high.”

People offer a variety of reasons they prefer commuting for an hour to moving closer to where they work, Ortiz said. Attachment to home, housing preferences, school choices, crime rates and entertainment offerings often play a role.

The report, “Economic Ties Across Southeast Louisiana,” was produced to give political, community and business leaders a foundation for making decisions about whether to form economic alliances that might help the area compete in a global marketplace. The report, however, says its findings are only a start and makes no recommendations on whether a so-called “super region” makes sense.

Ortiz said the data illustrate a “natural connection between our economies.”

“There is a shared specialized workforce between these areas,” Ortiz said. “What we don’t know is exactly what industries are driving this, although, looking at the big picture, it would make sense that big industries like oil and gas, shipbuilding and related transportation sectors share some part of the workforce.”

Staff Writer Cara Bayles can be reached at 857-2204 or at cara.bayles@houmatoday.com.